A great read...you are not in Hornblower's mind in this novel but you see him through the eyes of Lieutenant Bush who is a senior officer to Hornblower. You watch as a friendship is almost reluctantly develops between the two. You see his abilities to manipulate superiors develop, you see his love/necessity of the game of whist and how it fit into his life. Of course you see the courage, innovation and gallantry in the face of an enemy.

In the proicess you gain insight into a friendship that will follow throughout succeeding novels....such a pleasant quick read. ( )

My favourite Hornblower Novel. we see the man in a subordinate position, and facing several instances of unfair treatment. He copes, and even then is saved from even more degradation by a recreation of his real milieu. Napoleon starts up the war again. Our look at HH under very difficult conditions really humanizes him. It is similar in tone and plot to another Forester novel "Randall and the River of Time", that also bears up well under rereading. ( )

Hornblower was the inspiration for Star Trek's Captain James Kirk, as well as Cornwell's Sharpe. Hornblower is more cerebral and socially awkward than Kirk (or O'Brien's Aubrey), more educated and refined than Sharpe. In his own right, Hornblower is certainly an engaging and complex character and the series is an interesting study in leadership, and a fascinating portrait of life at sea in the age of sail.

Lieutenant Hornblower is the second book chronologically, and the friend who recommended these to me when we were both in high school told me to at least start with the third book, the story of Hornblower's first command, Hornblower and the Hotspur. The first two books are outliers in their different ways, and I think both benefit from getting to know Hornblower (and Lieutenant Bush) first, then seeing how he got the way he did.

This was the seventh Hornblower book Forester wrote, and he says in The Hornblower Companion he was interested in how Hornblower came to marry his wife Maria, and what led to his promotion as Commander. From The Hornblower Companion, page 156:

If ever... I were to write about Hornblower again, and deal with this portion of his life ending in his marriage, it would be desirable--necessary--to write from another angle... Someone had to observe Hornblower's future wife more objectively than Hornblower himself could be expected to. For that matter it was time that Hornblower himself was put through an objective examination.

So this is the one book in the series not from Hornblower's point of view, but rather from Bush, who'd serve with Hornblower in the future. And yes, I own The Hornblower Companion--and knew just where to go to find that quote. Because ultimately, I did become quite a fan of the series--and was able to better appreciate reading about this period in his life after reading some of the other books. ( )

Lieutenant William Bush came on board H.M.S. Renown as she lay at anchor in the Hamoaze and reported himself to the officer of the watch, who was a tall and rather gangling individual with hollow cheeks and a melancholy cast of countenance, whose uniform looked as if it had been put on in the dark and not readjusted since.

Quotations

Last words

And already there was something a little proprietorial about the adoration, and perhaps there was something wistful about the kindness.

Wikipedia in English (1)

In this gripping tale of turmoil and triumph on the high seas, Horatio Hornblower emerges from his apprenticeship as midshipman to face new responsibilities thrust upon him by the fortunes of war between Napoleon and Spain. Enduring near-mutiny, bloody hand-to-hand combat with Spanish seamen, deck-splintering sea battles, and the violence and horror of life on the fighting ships of the Napoleonic Wars, the young lieutenant distinguishes himself in his first independent command. He also faces an adventure unique in his experience: Maria.